master-servant
Authority and obedience
Master-servant describes a legal doctrine governing the relationship between an employer and employee, particularly regarding liability.
Under this framework, a master (employer) can be held responsible for wrongful acts committed by a servant (employee) while performing job duties—a principle called respondeat superior or vicarious liability.
The court applied master-servant analysis to determine whether the company was liable for the driver's negligence.
The terminology is archaic but persists in legal contexts.
Ranked authority structure
- subordinationLower position in hierarchy
- deferenceYielding to another's judgment
- obedienceCompliance with authority
- householdDomestic unit of residents
butler · maid · valet · class distinction · Victorian · Downton Abbey · upstairs downstairs · livery
Original model for copies
- power dynamicRelational control structure
- loyaltyFaithful commitment to another
- betrayalBreaking of trust
- JeevesByword for butler
Sancho Panza · Figaro · subversion · comedy · dramatic irony · confidant · foil · secret keeper
Established body of teachings
- agencyPower to act
- employment lawStatutes governing workplace relations
- tortActionable civil harm
- negligenceFailure to exercise care
liability · principal · common law · indemnification · duty of care · independent contractor · joint enterprise · delegation
Prescribed conduct rules
- replicationAct of duplicating precisely
- databaseOrganized digital information collection
- nodeConnection point in networks
- synchronizationAligning timing across systems
failover · distributed system · cluster · redundancy · handshake · dependency · architecture · load balancing
hierarchy
Ranked authority structure
- subordinationLower position in hierarchy
- deferenceYielding to another's judgment
- obedienceCompliance with authority
household · butler · maid · valet · class distinction · Victorian · Downton Abbey · upstairs downstairs · livery · quarters
archetype
Original model for copies
- power dynamicRelational control structure
- loyaltyFaithful commitment to another
- betrayalBreaking of trust
Jeeves · Sancho Panza · Figaro · subversion · comedy · dramatic irony · confidant · foil · secret keeper · disguise
doctrine
Established body of teachings
- agencyPower to act
- employment lawStatutes governing workplace relations
- tortActionable civil harm
negligence · liability · principal · common law · indemnification · duty of care · independent contractor · joint enterprise · delegation · authorization
protocol
Prescribed conduct rules
- replicationAct of duplicating precisely
- databaseOrganized digital information collection
- nodeConnection point in networks
synchronization · failover · distributed system · cluster · redundancy · handshake · dependency · architecture · load balancing · heartbeat
master-servantequals
Matches in value
peers · partnership · equal footing · colleagues · coequals
master-servantpartnership
Shared business arrangement
peer-to-peer · mutualistic · collaboration · fellowship · comradeship
master-servantindependent contractor
Self-employed person hired temporarily
free association · at-will employment · joint tenancy · partnership agreement · co-ownership
master, servant, masters, servants, mastery, masterful, masterfully, masterly, mastered